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Role-Playing Hints and Tips
This is mostly in reference for White Wolf's Storyteller System but can be used for most role-playing situations. Building a Character There are a lot of different methods and this isn't the end all advice, it's merely here to help those that need a boost and to get a character going. Several factors need to be taken into consideration when it comes to character creation. *Campaign *Group *Role-playing versus Roll-playing *Experience *Suspension of Disbelief *Enrichment Campaign: You need to pick something appropriate to the campaign. For instance, don't build a Wolverine type character from the Marvel Comics if the campaign is set in the Lord of the Rings Middle-Earth. Some Storytellers (Dungeon Master's) don't mind taking on this extra responsibility but in most cases it's going to detract from the story that your ST has put together. Most often it's better off if you stick with something that would make sense in the setting. Group: Knowing and understanding the people you're role-playing with is a bonus, but especially in Table-Top settings it's most important that you create a character that will get along with the group - if you're in a campaign with a group setting. "The Embrace" in particular has been built so that a group setting isn't critical to participating but any political maneuvering requires making friends so it's not a moot point. Whole campaigns have ended miserably because the group didn't have a cohesive dynamic. Role-playing versus Roll-playing: Role-playing games are named as such because you take on the role of a made up character to participate in a story. It's as though everyone in the group is responsible for writing pieces of a novel and with everyone's help a story is created. It's often best if you look at your character as a living breathing person, with a past, with merits and flaws, a real personality, and motivated by human factors. This character you've created is more than just numbers on a piece of paper that falls in line with the rules of the game. If you're writing a story, you're not going to outline what the character can and can't do, because those are mere details, pieces to a whole. In "The Embrace" it's important to have a personality attached to all of those stats. Roll-playing has it's own place. Meaning, the character as a person isn't as important as the numbers on your sheet. Dungeon crawls or killing the monster of the week is a good place where your dice rolls are crucial to the campaign. This is also why it's important to know what kind of campaign you'll be joining. Roll-playing can be fun too but isn't appropriate to "The Embrace" setting. Experience: This is in reference to the amount of experience you personally have when it comes to role-playing. People new to the idea of role-playing are probably better off creating a character closer to their own personality so they can draw off of their own past experiences to help motivate them in scenes and making decisions. It can be very difficult, even for players who have been role-playing for years, to run a character that's drastically different from themselves. If you tend to be a domineering personality it will be harder to role-play someone who is subservient or shy. The opposite is also true. Suspension of Disbelief: There are times when you'll just have to let things go. This means overlooking the limitations of several things: the rules, the setting, the plausibility of events, the human nature of the person/people running the campaign, and various other things. The Storyteller will make mistakes, the rules won't cover everything, and on the forum there will be misinterpretations and bad communication from time to time. Everyone does their best to keep all of it to a minimum and keep the story flowing but again, sometimes, you'll just have to let things go. A big one is that new characters are in and out of the game on a regular basis and sometimes will give reasons as to why they wish to not continue but sometimes they don't. Getting hung up on why characters are in and out when it has nothing to do with story hampers the flow. Enrichment: Why are you role-playing? What do you wish to gain from it? Hanging out with friends or even meeting new people are good reasons. Getting involved in a story or even escaping from your own life for a bit (as long as it's not taken over-board) can be a good drive. In the end, everyone wants to have fun, so keep that in mind for yourself and also for other people too. The experience can be very positive if we all work toward that end. Bored with a Character What do you do when you run out of ideas for your current character? Have you ever hit a dry spell where you suffer a mild form of ennui (a feeling of utter weariness and discontent resulting from satiety or lack of interest; boredom) with your character? There are several things you can do to counter these affects. *Background *Flaws *Getting involved in the politics *Goals Background Writing up a background for your character to have some depth is a good way to pull things from your past into the story. It will also help you define who and what your character is, but more importantly what motivates them. This is especially important if you're playing a character that's largely different from your own personality. It will help you decide how you'll react in future situations and give the Storyteller ideas in how to integrate your character. Some campaigns are completely composed of character backgrounds. Flaws This is a particular point of interest. Taking Flaws for your character (even if you don't gain points) will in most cases add depth to your character.